Promises broken, Ryan ten Doeschate wants to quit India coaching job
Unhappy with the lack of clarity about his role, India assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate wants to step down from the national team squad after the ongoing tour of England. Sources told PTI that the former Dutch captain is not happy with the responsibility he has had in the last two years.
While the Indian Cricket Board is understood to be interested in keeping ten Doeschate beyond his current contract, the 45-year-old has expressed his desire to return to franchise cricket and has already held positive discussions with at least one Indian Premier League franchise.
WHY IS THAT DOESCHATE UNHAPPY?
The development comes at a time when the contracts of Gautam Gambhir’s support staff are to be reviewed after the England tour. While coach T Dilip is unlikely to get another extension after a tough year, the BCCI hoped to continue with bowling coach Morne Morkel and assistant coach Ten Doeschate.
According to report ten, Doeschate accepted the India job after receiving assurances that he would eventually take over the team as a specialist fielding coach, a role that never materialised.
“You have (Sitansha) Kotak as the batting coach and Gauti (Gambhir) himself looks after the batsmen. Morne (Morkel) looks after the pacers and Sairaj (Bahutule) looks after the spinners. When Tendo was brought on board, he was promised the job of fielding coach,” a senior BCCI source told PTI on condition of anonymity.
Instead, T Dilip continued in his role after receiving a one-year extension, leaving ten Doeschate without a clearly defined area of responsibility.
“Dilip should have been removed along with Abhishek Nayar (assistant coach), Soham Desai (S&C coach) and Arun Kanade (masseur) after Champions Trophy 2025.
“However, there was a strong recommendation for Dilip from a senior player and Dilip got a one-year extension. Tendo didn’t really have a specific domain role. He’s a fantastic coach who hasn’t been tapped because Dilip is there,” the source added.
FRESH CHALLENGE FOR GAMBHIR
The report adds that it will now be up to head coach Gautam Gambhir to convince ten Doeschate to stay in the Indian team as he personally recommended him after the pair worked together at Kolkata Knight Riders.
Ten Doeschate joined the Indian coaching staff soon after Gambhir took charge and has largely worked behind the scenes as an all-round assistant. However, without a specialist portfolio, his role was said to be limited despite being highly regarded in coaching circles.
His potential exit would leave Gambhir with another hole to fill in the support staff, especially if T Dilip is released after the England tour.
FIELD UNDER CONTROL
India’s fielding standards have come under intense criticism in the past year, with several costly mistakes at major tournaments. The issue resurfaced during the recently concluded T20I tour of the UK, where India struggled badly in the field while slumping to a 0-6 record in the Ireland-England series.
The BCCI is expected to finalize the future of the support staff ahead of India’s tour of Sri Lanka. If the ten Doeschate decide to leave, Gambhir and the management might be forced to rethink their plans regarding the coaching staff, especially as T Dilip’s future is also uncertain.
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Issued by:
Kingshuk Kusari
Published on:
14 Jul 2026 19:08 IST